893.102 Tientsin/651
The Ambassador in China (Johnson) to the Secretary of State
[Received May 9.]
Sir: I have the honor to enclose for the Department’s information a copy of an informal note received from the Minister for Foreign Affairs dated April 23, 1940, enclosing a copy of a memorandum prepared in the Ministry under his instruction24 and relating to negotiations which have been going on between the British Embassy and the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in regard to certain Chinese owned silver located in the British Concession at Tientsin, which has been the subject of discussion between the British and the Japanese Governments. The Department will note that the memorandum states that the Chinese Government is unable to accept the formula believed to have been agreed upon between the British and Japanese Governments [Page 854] and described in the memorandum. Reference is made, in this connection, to a telegram which this Embassy sent to the Department, No. 113, March 4, 1 p.m.,26 in regard to this subject, and to telegrams from the Embassy at Tokyo to the Department reporting on the progress of the discussions there between the British Embassy and the Japanese Foreign Office.
Respectfully yours,